


Ayakashi || Bewitched

by zenheim



Category: Ayakashi Koi Gikyoku (Visual Novel)
Genre: Band, F/F, Genderswap, I made it gay, Kitsune, Romance, very gay
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-04-03
Updated: 2020-04-24
Packaged: 2021-03-01 00:34:20
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 7
Words: 8,949
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23462518
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/zenheim/pseuds/zenheim
Summary: This work is a fix-it fic of a visual novel called Ayakashi Koi Gikyoku. Originally, all band members were male, but I have waved my magic gay wand and made them all queer ladies. Suzuno finds herself the new assistant manager for a visual kei band who perform in kitsune personae and are weirdly obsessed with her family heirloom, a pendant. As they unravel the mystery of her necklace together, Suzuno and the drummer (Yuka, f!Uki) fall into a slowburn romance.
Relationships: Suzuno/Uki
Kudos: 1





	1. The Concert

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Milieu](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Milieu/gifts).



A full moon shone brightly over the entertainment district, which glowed with signs advertising dance clubs, bars, host clubs, and live music. Suzuno followed her cousin down a dimly-lit side street, where he trotted down a set of stairs further into the darkness. Even though she couldn’t hear the music yet, she could already feel the vibrations from the bass thumping in her chest. Out of nervous habit, Suzuno squeezed her necklace. The stone and glass pendant was comfortingly heavy in her hand. 

“Are you new to this kind of music?” Takashi asked. He had been watching her out of the corner of his eye and noticed her growing anxiety.

“I usually listen to classical music; nothing like this… Are you sure it’s really okay that I took this ticket? I feel kinda bad if members of their own fan club couldn’t even get in…” Based on the location of the venue, it didn’t feel like the sort of place where outsiders would be welcome. 

Takashi laughed at her worried expression. “It’s not that scary, I promise,” he teased. “Plus, maybe this will turn you into a fan!”

The chance for Suzuno to give a rebuttal was lost as Takashi opened the door to the live music bar and a wave of music crashed over them. The way the band members harmonized was bewitching, and the drums and guitar kept a driving beat. The venue was packed so tight that she worried about the fire code. Takashi was unbothered and pulled her through the crowd with him to the VIP section roped off next to the stage. 

Suzuno kept one hand on Takashi’s sleeve so they wouldn’t get separated, but her eyes were on the band on stage. FOX EAR was a popular new visual-kei band whose fame had come on virtually overnight with the release of their first album. All four members wore fox ears and tails, pretending to be kitsune in their band personae. While Takashi was FOX EAR’s manager, Suzuno was barely familiar with their hit singles. 

He hadn’t just brought her for fun, though; he wanted her to interview to be FOX EAR’s assistant manager. Suzuno had been the executive assistant for a wealthy older woman who had recently died, leaving her looking for work. She wasn’t sure she was cut out to work with a bunch of famous musicians, but Takashi had assured her that if she was used to dealing with the whims of a high maintenance old lady, finicky artists couldn’t be that much more difficult. 

Despite her doubts about whether she’d enjoy herself tonight, Suzuno found herself utterly absorbed in the performance. Their music managed to sound big without sounding too loud and relying on volume. All of the band members’ costumes were decorated with black leather straps that criss-crossed their body, and their ears and tails were colored to match their hair with the exception of the drummer, who had orange ears and tail despite her black and lime green hair.

“So what do you think?” Takashi shouted over the music. She wasn’t sure what her face had looked like, but he was obviously pleased with her reaction. “They don’t just draw people’s attention because of the kitsune costumes. They make great songs-- real music.” It was clear he took some pride in their success as their manager.

“I love it!” Suzuno shouted back, returning his smile.

Takashi pointed at the lead singer. “That’s Akira; she’s twins with the blue-haired girl beside her, Shizuka. Shizuka is really sweet, and she can usually calm Akira down when she gets too hot-headed. She’s the bassist; Akira is the lead and plays guitar.” 

Akira played a jaggedly shaped electric guitar the same cherry red as her messy pixie cut. Her nails were painted black, and she had the sleeves of a black and red jacket rolled up to her elbows. She sang passionately with her lips brushing the mic, making eye contact with fans in the crowd and getting them riled up. Next to her was a slender, pale-skinned girl with long blue hair that fell down her back. Her bass was blue as well and had a curvy body. She wore black combat boots and a black jacket over a white dress decorated with black lace. 

Tucked in the back was the drummer who sang with an excited, high voice. Her hair was black at the roots, but it faded into a lime green from her ears to her shoulders. Her ears and tail were a traditional orange, unlike the other members’, whose matched their hair. She wore a black gauze tank and black skinny jeans. She had a large, infectious smile as she shouted the chorus along with the rest of the band. Of the band members, she had the most upbeat energy, and she twirled her drumsticks whenever she had a rest. 

Takashi pointed at her. “Over there is Yuka. She’s basically a musical genius, but she’s really friendly. Ginsaki is also back there too on keyboard. She’s the oldest. She’s the most calm and mature, but she can still be pretty... aloof sometimes.” Ginsaki had straight, silver hair that hung down to her waist. Her features were sharp and angular. She played standing up, and she was the tallest of the band members. She wore a black and purple cheongsam top and black cargo pants hung with chains. There were two hoop piercings on her lower lip, as well as one on her eyebrow. 

After watching them for a while, Suzuno didn’t have any doubts about why they were so popular. The band just had an aura that made them standout, both visually and musically. The venue was crowded with fans that cheered for them adoringly and threw letters on stage, and the bouncers that kept the fans back from the stage swept the fanmail into a bin between songs. 

The band’s energy reached a crescendo midway through the show, and the members were all breathing hard as Akira introduced the next song. “Alright, are you ready for this?!” she shouted to the crowd. “Come on, everybody!” she called back to the other band members. “Let’s go!”

The audience roared in approval as they recognized the opening chords of the song. For the first time, all five of the band members began to sing together. Akira’s voice was hot and aggressive, while Shizuka’s was calm and soft. Yuka was sweet as she sang, while Ginsaki sounded seductive and alluring. Their voices overlapped and intertwined with each other, creating harmonies that only made the chasing melody more intense. 

Suzuno was basically vibrating with their energy. They weren’t like any other band she’d ever heard. The way the music pulled at her heart was as thrilling, if strangely exhausting. For some reason as the band gained momentum and the song got louder, Suzuno felt like her energy was being drained. Suddenly, the glass magatama embedded in her necklace began to shine.

“W-what on Earth?” For the first time since entering the venue, Suzuno’s attention was torn away from the band, and she looked down at her necklace in alarm. Automatically, she tried to cover the light to keep from drawing attention, but it only grew brighter, spilling out from between her fingers until the light swallowed her entirely, and Suzuno fell unconscious.


	2. Dreams

When Suzuno woke up, she wasn’t at the concert anymore. Instead, the area was quiet. A road was lined on either side with old, traditionally styled houses, and there was a dim light floating in front of her. She didn’t recognize any of the buildings, and she was pretty sure she’d never been there before. 

“This must be a dream…” she muttered, but her brows furrowed as she continued to take in her surroundings. It certainly didn’t feel like a dream. There was a cool breeze that made the hair on her arms stand up, and she could even see the paint peeling from aging shop signs. When she looked down, she almost jumped in surprise. Her body was partially translucent. This  _ had  _ to be a dream, she thought a little more desperately, although the feeling of unease lingered.

A harsh voice came from behind Suzuno, and she spun around. “Renounce her or be sentenced to prison for life!” Standing around the entrance to one of the houses was a group of kitsune men and women who formed a half circle around a single white-tailed fox. They were all well dressed in old-fashioned clothing that reminded her of the Nara period.

“I’ll never renounce Yachika, not as long as I live! It doesn’t matter that she’s a human! I love her, and you can’t stop us from being together!” the white kitsune shouted back passionately. 

“You embarrass us all by wasting your attentions on a human,” one of the kitsune women said, her voice filled with condemnation and disdain. 

“Why can’t you just leave us alone?!” The white kitsune was so infuriated that he sounded like he was on the verge of tears. 

Before Suzuno could hear the rest of the conversation though, her surroundings started to blur and spin out of focus. She cried out in alarm as the ground disappeared from underneath her, and she started falling. Flashes of other scenes of the past featuring kitsune swirled around her, and from them, snatches of conversation created an overwhelming murmur that echoed eerily around her. 

Finally, one of the scenes came into focus. All she could see was the white-tailed kitsune and a woman dressed in a traditional kimono. “This is goodbye…” He put a hand to the woman’s cheek, cradling her face with ease. “Thank you. You taught me the true meaning of happiness. No matter what, my spirit will always be with you. I love you, Yachika.” His voice became hoarse with sorrow, but he still smiled at the woman affectionately, his bright yellow eyes locked with hers. Their expressions were so tragic that Suzuno’s throat became tight and her eyes became hot with tears. 

As they spilled over, the scene blurred out of focus again, and Suzuno’s unconscious mumbling turned into a groan as she gradually regained consciousness, her eyes fluttering open.


	3. Backstage

She didn’t recognize the ceiling she was staring at, and she gingerly sat up to look around. Based on the posters on the walls and the wide dressing room mirrors, she was backstage in a green room. The members of FOX EAR were all gathered in a loose ring around the couch where she’d been sleeping, which immediately made Suzuno uneasy. 

The lead singer was glowering at her from across the room, which didn’t make her feel any better. “Finally, she wakes up!” Akira said with irritated impatience. 

“I can’t believe it belongs to our manager’s cousin… To think it was so close all this time,” Shizuka, the bassist, said with something like awe in her voice. 

Yuka looked back and forth between the twins and Suzuno. “Do you know what we’re even talking about?” she broke in to ask Suzuno. 

Ginsaki chuckled. She looked even taller up close than she had onstage behind her keyboard. “Based on the look on her face, she has no idea.” Suzuno wasn’t sure she appreciated her humor.

“Am I… backstage? What happened? I have no idea what you’re talking about,” Suzuno replied anxiously. To be honest, she was a little starstruck in addition to being dazed. The band had seemed larger than life on stage, and it was intimidating to meet them in person. “Where’s Takashi?” She would feel better if her cousin was around. 

Shizuka was the one who answered. “Takashi carried you back here after you passed out. Right now he’s packing up the sound equipment with the rest of the staff. You were knocked out for the whole second half of the concert.”

Ginsaki spoke next, pulling her long silver hair off to one side in a ponytail now that the show was over. “You caused quite the commotion. There was a bright flash in the area where you were standing, and the power flickered out for a minute. People are assuming it was an electrical surge that caused a spark, rather than that necklace of yours.” She tilted her head curiously as she spoke, and her face spread into a cheshire cat-like grin as she studied the pendant around Suzuno’s neck. Suzuno looked down self consciously, but the magatama was no longer shining.

“Are you feeling okay? Should we go get a paramedic? You don’t think you have a concussion, do you?” Yuka interrupted again, looking worried as she examined Suzuno from head to toe. 

“I think I’m okay. I didn’t hit my head or anything; I just feel a little out of sorts…” Suzuno replied, moving one hand through her hair to doublecheck that there weren’t any bumps. For the moment, all thoughts about the dream were pushed to the back of her mind. “I have no idea why my necklace did that… I’m sorry for causing trouble,” she said sincerely. “But if everyone else thinks it was a power surge, why do you all know it was my necklace?”

“Human eyes aren’t fast enough to follow magic,” Akira said with an eye roll, as though the answer were obvious. “But an apology isn’t enough. Give us the necklace!” Akira stormed forward threateningly.

“What are you doing!?” Suzuno said, shrinking back on the couch with one hand covering her pendant. She was instinctively frightened by the expression on Akira’s face; it was lined with hatred.

Right as Akira was about to grab Suzuno, the glass magatama embedded at the center of hre pendant flashed again, and Akira let out a surprised yelp as she was thrown backwards with a  _ zap  _ that everyone in the room could hear. Luckily, Akira landed on another green room couch. 

“I didn’t do that on purpose!” Suzuno spoke up, immediately horrified. However, she was still too intimidated to go check if Akira was alright. 

“That was the same flash as before…” Ginsaki pondered, resting her chin on her fingers as she thought. 

Suzuno was bewildered; she wished anyone would speak plainly about what had happened. “Do you guys know what’s going on?” Suzuno said, not bothering to hide her alarm and growing irritation.

No one answered her immediately, but finally Ginsaki cut the silence. “...I see. It’s defending you.” Of all the band members, the keyboardist was the only one who seemed to still be in possession of calm.

“Why would a kitsune relic be defending a human?” Akira said hotly, back on her feet and pacing. She didn’t try and go near Suzuno again, instead throwing her wary looks. 

Ginsaki ignored Akira, turning her focus to Suzuno. “I’m sorry to be rude, but is there any chance we could see your necklace?” she asked politely.

“Actually, this is a family heirloom… It’s been in my family for generations, and my grandmother gave it to me. It’s not valuable; it’s just stone and glass, but I wouldn’t feel comfortable giving it to you.” She had to gather her courage to refuse them, but Suzuno had a stiff backbone, and she spoke firmly. 

“It’s not  _ valuable?! _ ” Akira spat out angrily. “You have no idea what it even is!”

“What are you talking about?” Suzuno pushed back this time, curiosity winning out over fear. 

“Calm down, Akira. It’s not like you can take it by force,” Shizuka said, laying a hand on Akira’s arm to still her pacing. 

“It blasted you across the room before you even touched it. Give it up, and leave her alone, Akira,” Yuka agreed impatiently. 

Suzuno was getting more and more exasperated. “Will someone please answer my questions? Nobody in my family ever said anything about this being valuable. It’s just supposed to be a charm…”

Now Ginsaki ignored Suzuno, instead addressing Akira. “By the looks of it, the pendant belongs to her now. There’s no way of telling immediately how to change possession of the necklace, since the magic seems strong.”

“You mean we have to keep this human around until we figure it out?! Bullshit! You’ve gotta be joking,” Akira snapped angrily. 

“Chill out, Akira. Making friends with her is hardly the end of the world,” Yuka said. She rolled her eyes when Akira wasn’t looking and strode over to offer one hand to Suzuno. “I’m FOX EAR’s drummer, Yuka! It’s nice to meet you! Takashi said your name was Suzuno, right?”

Suzuno took her hand and stood up off the couch. “I-it’s nice to meet you too…” she trailed off, thrown off by how committed to their kitsune personae the band members were. There were days she felt like she hated humans too, but they seemed more serious than was appropriate for an act. 

Ginsaki shrugged at Yuka’s suggestion. “That’s as good an idea as any.”

Akira piped up again hotly. “I already said I don’t want to be friends with a human!”

Shizuka noticed the look of frustration and anxiety on Suzuno’s face, and she interrupted Akira before she could say anything else. “That’s enough for now, don’t you think? This isn’t a good place to get into a discussion about something like this,” Shizuka said seriously. Akira crankily obliged but continued to mutter unhappily under her breath.

“No, I want to know what this is all about. Why do you guys want my necklace so badly?” Suzuno insisted. 

“It has nothing to do with you,” Akira snarled. 

“What are you talking about?” Suzuno squinted at him incredulously. “Of course it does! It’s my necklace!” 

Ginsaki smirked in amusement. “She’s not wrong, Akira.” 

“Listen, if you’re just going to keep being cryptic, then I think I should go,” Suzuno stated firmly, having run out of patience. 

Automatically, Ginsaki took a step to stand between Suzuno and the door. “I’m sorry, but would you consider staying a little longer? We really should come to a decision about what to do about the necklace before letting you go.”

Shizuka’s tone was calm as she addressed Ginsaki and Akira. “Taking her prisoner is hardly going to solve any of our problems.” Despite her best attempts to remain calm, FOX EAR was beginning to really freak Suzuno out. Akira’s anger and the way Ginsaki guarded the door were an alarming combination. 

Yuka took a good look at Suzuno’s face before speaking up. “Akira! Shizuka! Ginsaki! Stop it! You’re scaring her for no reason!” She turned to Suzuno. “Please don’t be afraid. We’re just really caught off guard by what happened with the magatama. We’ve been looking for it for a long time,” she explained. Suzuno was grateful for the way Yuka stood up for her and for getting at least the beginning of an answer to her questions. 

Ginsaki cut in again. “What if we kept her around by putting her in the assistant manager position?”

“Stop talking about me like I’m not in the room!” Suzuno finally snapped, sick of Akira’s condemnation and Ginsaki’s condescension. 

Yuka automatically apologized on their behalf. “I’m so sorry for treating you so rudely, really,” she said, wide-eyed with sincerity. “But I do think it would be cool if you became our manager!”

“It’s not  _ you _ ,” Suzuno replied to Yuka, throwing the rest of the band dirty looks. “But you can’t just declare all of a sudden that I be your manager! Not when you won’t even give any of my questions a straight answer,” she argued. 

“Then become our manager, and we’ll answer your questions,” Ginsaki said smoothly.

At that moment, Takashi walked in and saw Suzuno. “Oh great! You’re awake!” He paused midstep, reading the tension in the room. “...What happened?” he asked.

“Well…” Suzuno didn’t even know where to start. 

Ginsaki cut in. “You came in at the perfect time. We were just discussing how your cousin might be a good fit for our new assistant manager. She’s very charming,” she said, flashing Suzuno a flirty smile. Suzuno was still too irritated by her attitude to smile back. 

Takashi’s eyebrows shot up in surprise and what looked like delight. “You already told them you were interviewing tomorrow?”

“No… They didn’t give me the chance,” Suzuno said tersely. 

Takashi was a little confused by her tone, but he looked too relieved at the news to care. “Wow! There aren’t that many people that these guys like. It’s been really difficult finding someone. You’ll take the job, right?”

“I don’t know…” Suzuno hesitated. She hadn’t gotten good vibes from the band so far.

“FOX EAR is getting really popular, and I really need more hands on deck to help. Plus, have you gotten any other job offers yet? This pays well!” Takashi persisted. 

Even though Suzuno didn’t answer immediately, Yuka bounced in excitement. “Well that settles it! You’re our new assistant manager! This is exciting! I’m happy I’ll get to know you!” 

Yuka’s enthusiasm made Suzuno smile in spite of herself, but her blood ran cold as she made eye contact with Akira across the room. Suzuno could have sworn her eyes were the same gold as the kitsune in the dream, but as soon as she blinked, Akira’s eyes had gone back to normal. Had she hit her head after all? Was she seeing things now? 

Maybe her eyes were playing tricks on her, but there was no disputing that something strange was happening with her necklace. She didn’t have a good first impression of most of the band members, but if she wanted to find out the story behind the magatama, her best chance was by taking the job. 

Suzuno finally nodded after an awkwardly long amount of time and looked around at the band members. “In that case, I guess I look forward to working with you.” She didn’t manage to sound excited, but at least she succeeded in hiding her dubiousness.


	4. Invitation

The next day, Suzuno spent all morning at the record label office, doing her onboarding paperwork. She’d never had to sign a nondisclosure agreement before, and she wondered again if taking this job was really such a good idea. It was lunchtime by the time she was done, and she stretched in the sun as she walked outside. After lunch, Takashi had asked that she take Yuka to her magazine interview, saying that Yuka was really friendly, so she didn’t have to be so nervous. Suzuno was embarrassed that Takashi could read her emotions; she wanted to appear confident, but he always saw through her. 

Her phone vibrated in her back pocket, and she pulled it out curiously. She didn’t recognize the number, but she picked up anyway. “Hello?”

“Suzunoooo! How’s it goin’?” a cheerful girl’s voice asked.

“Sorry, is this… Yuka? I didn’t recognize your number…”

“Yup! Aww, I’m happy you recognized me. I thought Takashi would have already given you a contact sheet or something though.” 

“I just got through doing my onboarding paperwork, and they gave me a bunch of stuff I haven’t had the chance to look through yet. It’s probably in one of these packets,” Suzuno said sheepishly, looking at the stack of papers she held in the crook of her arm. “So, um… is there anything I can do for you?” she asked awkwardly, not sure what managers were supposed to say.

“Oh right!” Yuka refocused. “I heard you’re taking me to my interview this afternoon. Do you have any plans until then?” she asked brightly.

“No, I’m free until then. How come?”

“Do you want to come over and have lunch?”

The question caught Suzuno by surprise. “The two of us? Or-”

“Everybody!” Yuka corrected her. “It would be a good way for us to get to know each other!” 

Takashi was right; Yuka’s friendliness did help put her at ease, but the idea of having lunch with the band members was a little intimidating. She wondered if they would drop the pretense of their kitsune personae and if that would make them any nicer than they’d been the night before. She paused for too long, and Yuka caught on immediately. “Suzuno, are you being shy?” she teased her a litte. 

“I’m not shy, exactly. Just…” she trailed off, trying to find something to say that wouldn’t embarrass herself further or offend Yuka.

“Nervous?” Yuka asked kindly.

“...Yeah,” Suzuno admitted with an anxious laugh.

To her surprise, Yuka burst out laughing too. “Hahahahaha! You’re so cute!” Even over the phone, her voice was really animated.

Suzuno was blushing furiously. “I am not…” she mumbled, which only made Yuka laugh harder. 

“You’re nervous about just eating with us! That is too, cute! Anyway, you’re our new assistant manager, so you’re officially one of us. There’s no reason to be shy or nervous. I promise the band will behave better than last night, cross my heart!” Suzuno could practically hear Yuka smiling over the phone. 

“Alright, I guess you’ve convinced me,” Suzuno gave in. Yuka’s voice had an infectious, upbeat quality that made her want to smile too. 

“We’re all at my apartment! Did they already give you the address, or do you want me to text it to you?” Suzuno had learned that all the band members were living together in apartments owned by the record label. Akira and Shizuka shared one two-bedroom, while Yuka and Ginsaki lived in studios on either side.

“Can you go ahead and text it to me? They gave it to me, but I’d have to search through this big stack of papers to find it…”

Yuka laughed. “Sure thing! The easiest way to get here from the label office is to catch the train and ride two stops uptown. I’ll see you soon!”

“Sounds good. Bye!” Suzuno hung up and hurried towards the train station. Despite her nerves, she was jumping at the chance to get answers out of FOX EAR about what had happened last night. 


	5. Hungry

Yuka texted her with the address before she got to the train station, and she didn’t have any trouble finding the tall glass building. The band’s apartments were on an upper floor with a good view of the rest of the city, and she lingered to look out of the hallway windows before gathering the courage to ring the doorbell on #147, Yuka’s studio. 

Suzuno heard a commotion from behind the door, and she could pick out Yuka’s voice shouting above the others. “She’s here!” Yuka cried excitedly before shouting, “Don’t be assholes like last time!” Suzuno covered her mouth with one hand as she tried to stop herself from laughing at Yuka’s over-eager attitude. Clearly, she didn’t know how thin her apartment door was. Yuka energetically yanked open the door with a huge smile. “Hey, Suzuno! You came!”

Suzuno reflexively blushed from the attention. “Hey, Yuka,” she smiled back. She hadn’t noticed last night when Yuka was behind the drum set, but the other girl was actually pretty short, even shorter than Akira. Yuka was dressed casually in a green plaid hoodie, jeans, and a tanktop with a cartoon skull and crossbones. Her shoulder-length black and lime green hair was pulled into two low pigtails.

“Come in!” Yuka stepped aside, and Suzuno entered the apartment. It was spacious for a studio. A black and white patterned rug covered most of the floor, and the walls were painted a soft yellow. Suzuno could glimpse the corner of a bed behind a rice paper folding screen, and in another corner, there was a island that separated the living space from a small kitchen. A large stereo took up space on one wall behind a drumset. It didn’t look like Yuka had a TV. If Suzuno were to guess, she thought that the apartment had likely come pre-furnished, since she didn’t get any sense of Yuka’s personality from the decor, aside from the CDs by the stereo and her drums. 

The Akira and Ginsaki were sprawled out, lounging on mismatched cushions on the floor around a kotatsu table. The table was covered in what looked like a mess of hand-scrawled sheet music and lyrics. Yuka grabbed Suzuno’s arm, half-dragging her over to the rest of them. Shizuka was the only one missing.

“Suzuno’s here!” Yuka chirped. 

“We can see that,” Ginsaki said in a flat voice, looking up from the sheet music she’d been reading. “You’re way too worked up. Can’t you be a little quieter, Yuka?” Yuka just pulled a face at Ginsaki; Suzuno barely stopped herself from cracking up again. The silver-haired girl looked over to Suzuno. “You can go ahead and make yourself at home. We don’t stand on ceremony at Yuka’s.” Ginsaki’s attitude wasn’t cold, but it certainly didn’t make her seem any more approachable than the night before. 

“Thanks,” Suzuno replied hesitantly. Akira, meanwhile, was ignoring her entirely, which was at least an improvement from the night before.

Ginsaki picked up another sheet of music; it looked like she was annotating them with a red pen. “I didn’t think you’d come,” she commented mildly in a tone that rubbed Suzuno the wrong way. 

It felt strangely personal for Suzuno to see FOX EAR out of costume, in the clothes they wore in private. Akira was in a baseball jersey and shorts. Ginsaki wore a plain white button-down with the sleeves rolled up. 

Looking at them, it felt like something was missing, although she couldn’t immediately place it. When she realized what it was, her first thought popped out of her mouth before she had time to filter it. “It’s funny seeing you all without ears and tails! I guess they just looked really natural.” As soon as she’d said it, she was mortified. What a stupid thing to say! She closed her mouth quickly.

Yuka and Ginsaki exchanged a look that Suzuno couldn’t read. “Of course we don’t wear them at home!” Yuka giggled, but Suzuno thought it sounded a little forced. 

From behind them, she heard the door open again, and Shizuka entered, carrying two more stacks of sheet music and wearing a long, baby blue, knit cardigan. “The printer is low on ink again,” Shizuka complained before noticing Suzuno. “Oh! You’re fast! I didn’t think you’d be here so soon. It’s nice to see you again.” She gave her a warm smile.

“It’s good to see you too. Can I help you with one of those?” Suzuno asked, indicating the stacks of paper. 

“Thanks.” Shizuka gratefully handing over one of them. The pages were still hot from the printer. “You can give those to Ginsaki. These are for Yuka,” she said, giving the rest of them to the black- and green-haired girl. Suzuno crossed the room and gave the music to Ginsaki, who accepted it politely. Suzuno felt a little less awkward having been given something to do, but it was short-lived as she was left standing empty-handed again.

“Hey, Shizuka, what’s for lunch?” Yuka piped up, not interested in what she’d been handed. She promptly dumped the papers on the table, which made Shizuka sigh. 

“Is it lunchtime already?” Shizuka looked over at a clock on the wall. “Wow, we’ve been working for longer than I thought. I haven’t had time to get anything ready.”

“Yes, it’s lunchtime, and I’m hungry!” Yuka whined playfully. Shizuka sighed again. “Come on, what are you going to cook?”

Ginsaki answered in a flat voice before Shizuka had a chance. “If you’re so hungry, why don’t you cook lunch? You should go get some groceries so your fridge doesn’t look like such a desolate wasteland.” It was hard to tell by her tone how much she intended her remark to be humorous.

“Ehhh? How come I have to go?” Yuka pouted. 

“You’re the one who said you wanted something to eat, so you should cook,” Ginsaki stated, plainly unmoved by Yuka’s puppy eyes.

“Uuuuuugh, fine!” Yuka groaned and stomped in a little circle. 

“I can go with you,” Suzuno offered, immediately grabbing onto an opportunity that wouldn’t leave her standing around awkwardly. She wanted a chance to interrogate the band properly about what they knew about her necklace, but she had no idea how to bring up the subject. At least they weren’t talking about how much they hated humans, although Akira hadn’t given her a friendly look yet.

“Are you sure?” Shizuka asked, offering her an out.

“Of course! I’m supposed to be your manager anyway, aren’t I?” Suzuno gave a small shrug. Maybe she’d be able to get some answers out of Yuka once they were alone.

“Yaaay! Are you gonna help me cook too?” Yuka cheered.

“If you’d like help! I’m not a Michelin-star chef, but I’ve never gotten any complaints about my cooking either,” Suzuno replied, laughing at Yuka’s enthusiasm.

“This is gonna be great! I’m so happy you’re here to help! Alright, let’s go!” Yuka hopped over to the entrance where she laced up a pair of battered Converse. 

“Good then.” Ginsaki returned to looking over the new sheet music in an immediate dismissal. Akira continued to ignore them as well, but Shizuka saw them off at the door with a wave, and “See you later, then!” Suzuno left, feeling much less intimidated after having seen them in such a domestic setting. 


	6. Groceries

“So where are we going?” Suzuno asked, following Yuka out of the elevator. 

“There’s a supermarket about two blocks from here that always has good fish and veggies,” Yuka replied brightly.

Suzuno took a deep breath and gathered up her courage. It was easier to ask her alone than face all of them at once. “Can I ask you something?”

Yuka smiled brightly and nodded. “Sure!” 

“Why do you guys want my necklace so badly?” Suzuno asked.

Yuka looked immediately put out. “I really shouldn’t say… Ginsaki would explain all that better than I can. It might be better to talk when we’re all together.” Yuka looked at the ground and scuffed a pebble aside with her shoe. “Can’t you ask me about something else instead?” she asked hopefully.

“I don’t want to talk to them about it; I want to talk to you,” Suzuno said plainly, stopping on the sidewalk to make Yuka turn around and see how serious she was. 

Yuka shifted uncomfortably, her willpower clearly crumbling. “You just want to know why we want it, right?”

“Well, for now. I have a lot of other questions too,” Suzuno sort of compromised.

“I just don’t want to answer because there’s no way you’re going to believe me anyway…” Yuka pleaded.

“I believe that something really strange is going on, and I expect that means some of the answers are going to be pretty strange too,” Suzuno said firmly.

Yuka gave a deep sigh. “Okay,” she said a little glumly, waving for Suzuno to walk with her. “All four of us come from the same village. There’s a curse on it, and the magatama in your necklace is a powerful item we could use to break the curse.” She held her breath, waiting to see how she would respond.

Suzuno slowly nodded, absorbing what she had said. Immediately, her minds was filled with more questions, like where the band was from, what kind of curse it was, and how they knew her necklace would help. Her previous promise to limit herself to one question was already forgotten, and she had difficulty choosing which to ask next. 

“Akira said that humans couldn’t see that the flash came from my necklace. I even asked Takashi who was standing right next to me when it happened, and he thought it had been an electrical surge like everyone else! How come you guys could see what really happened then?”

Yuka was silent for a long time, looking torn. “You said you only wanted one question for now,” she finally said.

Suzuno decided to switch tactics and see if she could get an answer based on Yuka’s reaction. “Is it because you all are really kitsune?”

Yuka looked at her with shock and alarm, and she had to clear her voice before she managed an answer. “Ha, what, just because of our costumes?” It was a weak attempt at humor.

“No. Because while I was passed out, I don’t think I was dreaming. I saw visions of what looked like the past, and all of them had kitsune men and women in them.” It sounded crazy when she said it aloud, but Yuka was looking at her with fascination and amazement rather than doubt.

“What did you see?!” she asked eagerly.

“Now it’s my turn not to answer. I’m not telling anything about what I saw until we’ve sat down with the rest of them and gotten some things straight. I want to know more about the curse, and I want to know if you all are really kitsune, or something other than human. I promise I’m not going to tell anyone, but I deserve to know the truth, because this is my necklace.” Suzuno’s tone left no room for argument.

“Fine, I guess that makes sense. A grocery store probably isn’t the best place to talk about this stuff anyway…” Yuka pouted. Then, as if she were shaking her head to clear away the disappointment, her smile came back, and she bounced on her heels as she asked her next question. “So what should we make for lunch today?”

“Hmm… well, what kind of food does the band like to eat?” she asked as they entered the grocery store. It was busy from the lunchtime rush, and several people seemed to recognize Yuka. They pulled out their cellphones and began whispering to each other behind their hands. Suzuno felt uncomfortable at the attention, but Yuka didn’t seem to be bothered if she noticed at all. 

“We all like different stuff. Who do you wanna know about?” she asked as they browsed the produce section.

“Well, how about you, for starters?” Suzuno smiled at her. She thought it was cute the way Yuka’s face lit up when she said ‘you.’ 

“I love spicy food! Especially curry. If you asked about me, does that mean you like me best?” Yuka asked in an innocent, hopeful voice that Suzuno also thought was cute.

“Well… Yeah, a little, I guess,” Suzuno replied, turning bright red. “You’re certainly the nicest to me. You did stand up for me last night,” she reminded her. “...I guess as manager, I’m not really supposed to have favorites though, so don’t tell anyone,” she added worriedly. 

“Haha, that makes me happy to hear.” Yuka’s face glowed with happiness. It was hard to believe that Yuka liked Suzuno just because she was trying to get the necklace. She seemed too sincere to be faking her good moods. Suzuno stayed quiet, embarrassed by how pink her cheeks were. “Hehe, your face is red, Suzuno!” Yuka, luckily, didn’t make her stew for long, picking up the thread of conversation again with minimal teasing. “Anyway, for the rest of them… Akira likes any kind of junk food, and she always puts soy sauce all over what she’s eating, so it basically doesn’t matter what it is. Shizuka is the best cook, and she likes sweets, like the fancy kind you get at pastry shops. Ginsaki likes natto,” she pulled a disgusted and horrified face, “but she makes good sushi.” She rattled off the list with familiar affection in her voice. It seemed like she genuinely liked talking about the others.

“How long have you all known each other? Or been a band? You seem like you know them really well and care about them,” Suzuno asked, forgetting they were supposed to be shopping as she got absorbed in Yuka.

“Well, without them, I’d…” she trailed off, before changing tacts. For a moment, Suzuno saw something that could have been sadness flash across her face. “I’ve known Akira and Shizuka since we were all kids, although they’re a few years older than me. I met Ginsaki around when Akira started the band. She’s a really good song writer,” Yuka said with admiration. “She’s kinda condescending sometimes though. I wish she’d lay off my age,” she complained. Suzuno thought that was a curious thing to harp on, since Ginsaki didn’t look older than her thirties while Yuka looked mid-twenties. 

Suzuno hadn’t missed Yuka’s slip, but it seemed like she didn’t want to talk about it, so Suzuno stored the information away for later and kept the conversation light. “Takashi is like that towards me sometimes. He’s not that much older, but he loves to pull that card when we argue,” Suzuno said, rolling her eyes.

Yuka snickered. “It’s hard imagining Takashi being silly. He’s always so serious and stressed at work. Oh look! There’s Akira’s favorite kind of chips. Let’s get some of those. Maybe she’ll be less of a stick in the mud if we bring her good snacks.”

“Anything you think will help… I’m willing to take any advice you’ve got in regards to her. She _hates_ me, and I don’t know what I did.” Suzuno shook her head.

When Suzuno turned around, Yuka was trying to sneak a box of chocolatey cereal into the basket without her noticing. Suzuno gave her a look, not for her choice in brand, but because it was a lame attempt at being sneaky. Yuka looked like a puppy discovered with chewed slippers, but it turned into an involuntary, self-conscious giggle. It broke Suzuno’s scolding expression and made her laugh too, shaking her head. Yuka quickly cleared her throat and started pretending like nothing had happened. “You didn’t do anything; Akira’s just like that sometimes. She’s prickly to everyone besides fans. She has a weird soft spot for them, even though she usually hates people. I think reading the fan mail from people who look up to her has made her a better person, instead of giving her a big head.” 

“That’s surprising. Do you have eggs at home? They’re cheap today,” Suzuno replied, switching subjects.

“My fridge only has, like, milk, eggs, and Eggo waffles. But I do have eggs!” Yuka replied cheerfully, when Suzuno expected her to be a little more embarrassed. 

Suzuno shook her head, somehow unsurprised. “Let’s make ramen for lunch today. We need a bunch of fresh veggies, beef, and noodles.”

“Okay!” Yuka brightly agreed. “What should I go get?” she asked, like a little kid who wanted a mission, and Suzuno couldn’t help but smile.


	7. Lunch

When Suzuno and Yuka got back to the apartment, the other three band members were still hard at work, passing around edits on the songs they were writing. Based on the look of Yuka’s kitchen, which seemed a little unusually tidy, Suzuno assumed she didn’t cook much. Yuka seemed to be getting more and more nervous as they unloaded the groceries onto the counter. “I bet you’re a much better cook than I am… I hope I don’t get in your way,” Yuka said a little anxiously. 

“You won’t be in my way! It’s fun to cook with other people, and I’m glad I have help,” Suzuno encouraged her with a smile, which made the shorter girl perk right up. 

“Okay! I’ll do my best!” she said, pushing up her sleeves and washing her hands. “What should I do first?” Yuka put her hands on her hips in an attempt at humorous confidence.

“Why don’t you start by washing and chopping the vegetables? I’ll get the broth going,” Suzuno said, cracking up a little. She enjoyed sneaking glances at the drummer as she worked. Yuka hummed as she cut the vegetables, and Suzuno noticed with a small smile that the other girl chopped in time with her melody. Eventually, Yuka delivered a cutting board covered with colorful vegetables in neat piles. “All done! What’s next?” she beamed.

Suzuno put Yuka in charge of watching the noodles and stirring while she got a jump on cleaning up the kitchen. She set up places around the kitchen island, the closest Yuka had to a dining room table since the kotatsu was covered in music. “Hey,” Yuka caught her attention as she was putting chopsticks on the placemats.

“What?” Suzuno looked up.

“You were right. Cooking together is fun!” Yuka said with a huge, toothy grin.

It was contagious, and Suzuno grinned back. “I’m having a good time, too. This certainly doesn’t have to be the last time we do it, either!” she offered brightly. 

Yuka spun in a circle to show her delight, then asked “Is it done yet?” She bounced her weight from side to side as she prodded the noodles impatiently. 

Suzuno came over, inhaling deeply before checking the noodles’ texture. “Yes!” she gave a satisfied nod and flipped the burner off. She and Yuka topped the bowls with extra vegetables, egg, and pork until the ramen looked as delicious as it smelled. “Lunch is ready!” Suzuno called to the rest of the band members. 

Ginsaki got up with a sigh, stretching her back and rubbing her neck. Akira groaned and let her head fall forward onto the kotatsu with an audible  _ thump _ . “I hate reading sheet music,” she groaned. 

“Eating will make you feel better,” Shizuka said, offering Akira a hand up. Akira’s stomach rumbled in reply, and she accepted Shizuka’s hand, grumbling to herself the whole time. Shizuka’s tone was familiar and calm; this was clearly not the first time they’d had this conversation.

As the band members each took their places on barstools around the island, Suzuno felt like she was their manager properly for the first time. There was something deeply satisfying about taking care of people, and she was grateful it was her job. 

There was a chorus of “Itadakimasu!” and everyone dug in, besides Suzuno and Yuka. The cooks glanced at one another sheepishly, realizing they were both too nervous to eat before hearing if the others liked it.

“So… what do you think?” Yuka asked hopefully after a few moments of silence.

“It’s really good! I can’t believe you helped make this, Yuka,” Shizuka said warmly.

“Hey!” Yuka complained. “That was a little backhanded, don’t you think?” she grumped. 

“It’s not bad,” Akira admitted a little reluctantly. She was having a hard time pouting and scarfing down her pork at the same time.

“I really like it,” Ginsaki agreed. She gave Akira a reproachful look for her messy eating habits.

Yuka turned to Suzuno. “Yay, Suzuno! You did it!” She waved two peace signs happily.

Ginsaki’s smile was hard to read. “You two seem to be getting along well already.” 

To Suzuno’s surprise, Yuka leaned over and grabbed her arm excitedly. “Yeah, we are!” Yuka chirped and grinned. 

Suzuno realized that her heart was pounding, and she looked down at her food to hide the color that rose to her cheeks. “Yeah, I guess… Let’s dig in while it’s hot,” she suggested a little shakily. 

After everyone’s eating began to slow down, Suzuno worked up her courage and looked around the island at the four of them. “This seems like a good time to discuss what happened last night and how my necklace can help with the curse on your village.”

Akira’s expression immediately soured. Shizuka and Ginsaki both stared accusatorily at Yuka. Ginsaki’s voice was flat when she spoke. “Yuka.”

Yuka squirmed in her seat but didn’t say anything. Suzuno waved one hand. “Don’t look at her; look at me! I’m the one who pressured her into answering my question, and she didn’t tell me anything else,” she insisted, unwilling to let it drop until Shizuka and Ginsaki looked more conciliatory. “Plus, you’re going to have to tell me at some point if you want to get my necklace. This is an important family heirloom, so I’m not going to just hand it over. There’s no point in putting off telling me the truth.”

Ginsaki gave a resigned sigh. “So where would you like to start then, if you’re so curious?”

Suzuno had her first question ready immediately. “What kind of curse is your village under?”

Clearly, it was Ginsaki who was going to be the one giving her answers. She weighed her words before she spoke. “The village is barren. Because of the curse, the last time a child was born there was over twenty years ago.”

Sympathy immediately filled Suzuno’s face. “How can my necklace help?”

Ginsaki pointed at the pendant that hung between her breasts. “That glass magatama inside your necklace-- It’s an object of power that belonged to the shrine at our village. Whoever held the magatama had their abilities magnified, to the point where they could achieve spellcraft strong enough to break the curse.”

“It gives people magical powers? I wonder how it came to be passed down in my family,” Suzuno said with wonder as she stared down at the necklace in her palm. 

“So do we,” Ginsaki said a little tartly. “It doesn’t  _ give _ people magical powers, though. It amplifies what’s already there.”

Suzuno frowned but chose to ignore the remark. “So why did the magatama react like that last night? It’s never flashed or given me visions before.”

“It gave you visions?” Ginsaki said with sudden interest.

“I asked first,” Suzuno said bullishly. 

“Tch,” Ginsaki rolled her eyes. “You’re a very stubborn girl.” Suzuno just stared at her and waited. “The four of us use our voices to cast a finding spell when we sing. That was… certainly not the way I anticipated the spell working, I admit,” Ginsaki sounded somewhere between regretful and embarrassed. “It was just supposed to give me the magatama’s location.”

Yuka had been sitting on her hands, trying very hard to keep quiet during Ginsaki’s explanation, but she finally got too bored and butted in. “It’s the whole reason we’re a band! So we can travel around the country, singing the spell! The spell has a pretty small radius, so we spent the last year doing as many shows as we could in as many places as we could, trying to find the magatama,” she said in an excited rush. 

“Magic by singing…” the idea had clearly captured Suzuno’s imagination, and her tone showed she was impressed. “So… are you all not really human then? Is that why you can do magic?” Suzuno stared around the table, but no one answered her. 

Ginsaki was sitting with her arms crossed, and she finally broke the silence. “That topic isn’t up for discussion today. Tell us about your visions,” she said in a voice that left no room for argument.

Suzuno argued anyway. “When will it be up for discussion?” she pressed.

“Someday,” Ginsaki answered flatly, glaring at the other band members as a warning to keep their silence. “We’ve answered plenty of your questions. Now I want to hear about what you saw when you were passed out last night.”

Suzuno sighed but was judicious about picking her battles. “After my necklace flashed, I started having these… visions. I don’t know what else to call them; they definitely weren’t dreams. They were too realistic, with way too much detail. All of them featured kitsune men and women.” She paused, looking around the group to see if that got a reaction. None of them seemed surprised, and they tried to hide their increased interest. “They were all set a long time ago, maybe around the Nara period,” she continued, “There was a white kitsune in both scenes I remember: 

“In the first one, he was in a traditional-looking village, surrounded by other kitsune who were yelling at him for having a relationship with a human, Yachika, but he refused to renounce her. The other kitsune were really angry and threatened to jail him, but he didn’t give in. 

“The next scene was him alone in the woods with the woman, Yachika. Neither of them wanted to go, but he was saying goodbye to her.” Suzuno’s throat tightened, just remembering the farewell. “I saw snippets of other visions about kitsune too, but those are the only two I remember clearly,” she finished, anxiously waiting for a reaction.

Shizuka looked deep in thought, and Ginsaki drummed her fingers on her jaw, lost in her own thoughts as well. Yuka was staring at Suzuno in a mixture of fascination and curiosity, shifting her weight from side to side in a rhythm she tapped out with her feet on the rungs of the barstool. 

Suzuno didn’t know what to do with the attention but managed to stay focused on the conversation. “So none of you have ever heard of Yachika, then?” They all shook their heads. “Okay… Then how did your village get to be cursed?” she changed the line of her questioning.

Yuka and Shizuka looked over at Ginsaki, but Ginsaki shook her head. “That’s also a question for another day.”

“You promised me answers if I became your manager,” Suzuno insisted.

“And we’re giving them to you, at our own pace,” Ginsaki emphasized calmly. “We’ll look into who this white kitsune could have been. Maybe that will lead us to some answers about why we can’t touch the magatama. Would you mind looking into any family history related to the necklace, especially how you came to have it?”

Suzuno reluctantly let Ginsaki bring the subject to a close. “I can do that. Then we can pick this discussion up again later,” she nodded, not really asking. She stole a glance at Yuka, who was still sitting on her hands. She seemed like an easy nut to crack later if Suzuno got too impatient, but she didn’t want to get Yuka in trouble again if she could avoid it. Yuka caught her looking and gave her a toothy grin, which made Suzuno blush against her will. Yuka was too cute for her own good, or Suzuno’s. 


End file.
